The human heart is a complex and critical pump. Due to various pathologies, the heart can become dysfunctional, acutely or chronically. When damage to the heart has become sufficiently symptomatic by clinical measures, the heart may be diagnosed as cardiomyopathic, a form of heart failure. In such a situation, a doctor can recommend mechanical assistance among the few therapeutic options that include pharmacologic therapy and heart transplantation. Where an afflicted person is scheduled to receive a transplant, mechanical assistance may be a choice of therapy until a donor heart becomes available.
Blood pumps are commonly used to provide mechanical augmentation to the pumping performed by the left and/or right ventricles of the heart. Ventricular assistance may be provided by an implantable pump that is connected in parallel with the person's heart and may be implanted adjacent to the heart, in contact with the heart, or in a remote location such as the abdomen. The choice of blood pump and implantation location can be determined by factors such as the size of the pump, the style of pump, the duration of mechanical assistance as required by the patient's condition, the size of the patient, and the like.